He was lord mayor of the Lower Franconian town of Aschaffenburg in Bavaria, Germany, for thirty years.

In 1946, when Reiland was aged twelve, he and his family were expelled out of Czechoslovakia.

He attended secondary school in Aschaffenburg, then studied law in Würzburg, receiving his doctorate in 1960.

In 1977, the couple were presented to the Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh, during a visit to Perth, Scotland, a twin town of Aschaffenburg.

Eleven years later, Reiland opened Perth's St John's Shopping Centre.